UCLA
Baylor
Bruins Visit Waco to Battle Bears
March 02, 2017 | Women's Tennis
LOS ANGELES -- The No. 21 UCLA women's tennis team will look to conclude its non-conference slate with a victory Saturday, when it visits No. 13 Baylor in Waco, Texas. Play at the Hurd Tennis Center will begin at 11:00 a.m., PT.
When the Bruins hosted then-No. 12 Pepperdine on Feb. 26, it marked UCLA's first home match in nearly a month. Rain postponed the ranked opponents' previously-scheduled Feb. 17 tilt at Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts. When the rain cleared, however, the Waves showed why its preseason No. 3 ranking was warranted. Pepperdine claimed the doubles point despite the UCLA (6-3) team of No. 4 Ena Shibahara and Jada Hart picking up their seventh win in eight dual-match decisions. Shibahara and Hart defeated second-ranked Christine Maddox and Mayar Sherif on Court 1.
In singles, Alaina Miller of the Bruins evened the score with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over No. 51 Laura Gulbe on Court 4. The Waves went on to take the next four decisions, however, to claim the overall win. Hart added a win over No. 17 Sherif, 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (7), after the match was clinched. The loss closed February for the Bruins, who dropped their final two matches after running off four wins to begin the month.
No. 13 Baylor currently sits at 7-2, with two home matches scheduled for Thursday. The Bruins' and Bears' months of February offered some parallels, including identical 1-2 records against ranked opponents. The Bears defeated No. 23 Northwestern, 5-2 (Feb. 17), before being swept by No. 10 Michigan, 7-0 (Feb. 19), and No. 2 Ohio State, 4-0 (Feb. 26), over the span of nine days.
UCLA and Baylor have played a tightly contested all-time series, as the Bruins lead 6-5. In a match played at Sunset Courts last season (Feb. 27), UCLA defeated the Bears, 4-1. Current Bruin Terri Fleming captured wins in both singles and doubles, while Miller added a victory on Court 3 in singles action. Baylor will look to even the score behind three players in the latest ITA/Oracle rankings. In doubles play, Blair Shankle and Elizabeth Profit checked in at No. 18 when the latest installment was announced on Feb. 21. Meanwhile, in singles, Shankle sits at No. 14, while previously unranked Rhiann Newborn is now slotted at No. 105.
When play in Waco is completed, the Bruins will immediately turn their attention to Pac-12 play. UCLA will host No. 16 Stanford and No. 7 California on back-to-back days at Sunset Courts, beginning with the Cardinal at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Mar. 10. The Bruins will then look to avenge its non-conference loss to the Golden Bears on 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 11.
Players Mentioned
